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Submitted by: Tony

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I have to admit to having tried something like this. What is said is right, thinking about kendo as a real sword fight is losing the purpose of kendo. It's like racing a flight simulator against a real submarine and thinking which is better. That said, I have a friend who is a kung fu instructor and we put our protections on and tried kendo vs. Chinese sword style and then kendo vs. bo stick. The reason kendo won so easily has nothing to do with if I am a better martial artist or no. The reason is that in kung fu weapon practise (at least in this school) all they do is spar. They feint, tap and slap each other, whereas we deliver "killing blows", so we have a spirit they are unable to possess. Our economy of movements, simple strategy and straightforwardness is hard to cope with by someone used to spinning, intimidating or just doing decorative movements. Had they been real weapons, I was prepared for a real fight and he despite 20 years of training, wasn't. In that session I did not feel superior or better, I just learned a lot about kendo but to be honest I would not do something like that again It's just against the spirit. I must admit that if it had been a real fight without rules he would have used unarmed combat to turn me into a dojo decoration :-) <strong>Kendo-Guide.Com:</strong> Thank you for sharing your experience. Many want to know what is the best martial art, if they can use it in real fight or martial arts should be used in real fight; otherwise, it is no use. That?s an opinion. And my opinion is that I do not want anyone to use kendo to hurt others and it is not the purpose of kendo that I know of.

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Submitted by: Anonymous

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Excuses are always being made for traditional martial arts, often in the form of what I've read here on this page. Bear in mind that I don't claim Kendo is ineffective, but am rather pointing out the dishonesty of claiming that any martial art should continue to exist without scrutiny of its effectiveness in real life. If I were to take up a martial art, I would at the very least like to know that what I'm learning could have potential use, should I encounter such a rare situation as to be attacked. Simply stating that the art is a means to hone oneself as an individual, with no bearing on one's ability to fight, is a complete cop-out, and if the art truly has only such a basis for its existence, then it is fraudulent; it is a farce. Osu, ~A Kyokushin Karate student <strong>Kendo-Guide.Com:</strong> Thank you for sharing your opinion. In your opinion and point of view, kendo is not in your martial arts category. I would like to share my opinion. I admit that kendo is not for self-defence because we do not learn how to protect ourselves by blocking, punching, kicking and throwing. Kendo changed its form to be safer. Now we do not have throwing, kicking, sweeping and etc. Those are really old techniques. Thus, my answer to people who wonder how effective kendo is in real fighting situations is ?not effective?. We, kendo practitioners, also train hard not like hitting tress to train fists or anything like that, physically hard as well. You chose karate because it is useful in case you have to defend yourself. That is really good. I train kend? because it helps me to control my ?short temper?. It keeps me on the right track. It makes me strong physically, mentally and as a human. Also there is something I cannot explain in kendo. Kendo is very useful and helpful in my real life. But not in your real life. That is all.

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Submitted by: soyuz

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It was said that a true "knight" never actually "kills" any one. And that the true intention of knighthood was to secure peace. And to be "sword-worthy" is to be able to fully control oneself. (Or else, how would an ill-tempered person be allowed to walk around with a sword on his side?) I believe that this is what kept kendo alive up to this time (unlike some numerous long lost swordsmanship of the world), which is no longer used for fighting, but to help control oneself. (I do watch the matches between <em>shinai</em> and long sword or <em>naginata</em> just to compare the techniques used). <strong>Kendo-Guide.Com: </strong>Thanks for your post. It is important to study and learn techniques but we always should remember the purpose of <em>kendo</em>.

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